January Intake in UK 2027: 16 Confirmed Universities and Key Deadlines

  • Last Updated on: October 5, 2026 by
  • Shiva Sai Bejawada
January Intake in UK
January Intake in UK

For the January intake in UK 2027, teaching starts between 18 January and 1 February 2027 at universities including Queen Mary, Liverpool, Exeter, Northumbria and Coventry. International deadlines close first: Birmingham’s Computer Science MSc closes to visa applicants on 30 October 2026, and Liverpool on 18 December 2026. Your real deadline comes even earlier. You must pay a deposit before the university sends your CAS, the letter your visa needs, and at Northumbria that is 13 December 2026. From 30 November 2026, the visa funds figure also rises to GBP 1,203 a month outside London. Planning to study in the UK this winter? Apply this month: most published dates fall between 13 November and 18 December.

Written by
Shiva Sai Bejawada
Senior Counsellor (British Council Certified) -UK & Ireland
Shiva Sai Bejawada is a British Council Certified overseas-education counsellor at AOEC India who guides Indian students through UK and Ireland university selection, admissions, and student visa documentation.
6 Years, 96% visa approval rate
Reviewed by
Sridhar Kongara
Managing Director
Mr. Kongara Sridhar, Director of AOEC India, has over 12 years of experience in overseas education consulting, admissions, and student visa guidance.
Over 12 years Experience

Key Takeaways

  • September visa refused or late: use the table. Birmingham’s Computer Science MSc closes 30 October 2026, BCU 18 November for Indian applicants, Liverpool 18 December.
  • Parents: from 30 November 2026, hold GBP 10,827 (approx. INR 13.8 lakh) outside London or GBP 14,130 (approx. INR 18.0 lakh) in London, plus unpaid fees, for 28 days.
  • Some science and engineering courses need ATAS, a UK security clearance. If yours does, apply now: it takes at least 30 working days.
  • Class 12 student: Greenwich takes January undergraduates through UCAS or its fast track.
  • Graduate visa: 18 months if you apply on or after 1 January 2027, whatever month you started (3 years for doctoral graduates).
Table of Contents
January Intake in UK 2027: Universities and Deadlines Scroll here ↓ Application and Visa Timeline for the January 2027 Intake Scroll here ↓ January Intake Costs, Funds and Payment Dates Scroll here ↓ January vs September Intake: Course Length and Graduate Visa Scroll here ↓ Missed the January Deadline? Your Next Intake Options Scroll here ↓ Frequently Asked Questions Scroll here ↓

January Intake in UK 2027: Universities and Deadlines

Sixteen UK universities have confirmed January 2027 postgraduate starts, with teaching between 18 January and 1 February 2027. International deadlines run from 30 October 2026 at Birmingham to 4 January 2027 at Exeter, and seven publish no closing date. International deadlines usually close weeks before the home date for UK applicants.

UniversityTeaching startsInternational deadlineUK applicants’ deadlineSample January course (length, international fee)
University of BirminghamJanuary 202730 Oct 2026 (Computer Science MSc, visa applicants)18 Dec 2026MSc Computer Science, 1 year, GBP 34,740 (approx. INR 44.2 lakh)
Brunel University of LondonJanuary 202713 Nov 2026 (recommended)Same dateManagement MSc, 1 year, GBP 24,795 (approx. INR 31.6 lakh)
Birmingham City University25 Jan 202718 Nov 2026 (India)Not yet publishedMSc Computer Science, 12 months, GBP 18,970 (approx. INR 24.1 lakh)
Northumbria UniversityJanuary 202730 Nov 2026Same dateMSc Advanced Computer Science, 16 months, GBP 21,500 (approx. INR 27.4 lakh)
University of Portsmouth18 Jan 202730 Nov 2026 (India)Not yet publishedMSc Computer Science, 18 months, GBP 19,200 (approx. INR 24.4 lakh)
Loughborough University London1 Feb 202714 Dec 202625 Jan 2027International Business Management, 1 year, GBP 25,900 (approx. INR 33.0 lakh)
Queen Mary University of London25 Jan 202714 Dec 202611 Jan 2027Artificial Intelligence (Conversion) MSc, 1 year, GBP 35,250 (approx. INR 44.9 lakh)
University of Liverpool1 Feb 202718 Dec 202615 Jan 2027MSc Advanced Computer Science, 12 months, GBP 34,000 (approx. INR 43.3 lakh)
University of ExeterJanuary 20274 Jan 2027Same dateMSc Computer Science, 1 year, GBP 29,800 (approx. INR 37.9 lakh)
University of StrathclydeJanuary 2027No formal closing dateNo formal closing dateMSc Advanced Computer Science, 12 months, GBP 31,900 (approx. INR 40.6 lakh)
Sheffield Hallam UniversityJanuary 2027Not yet publishedNo formal closing dateMSc Computing, 1 year, GBP 18,600 (approx. INR 23.7 lakh)
Coventry UniversityJanuary 2027Not yet publishedNot yet publishedMSc Computer Science, 1 year, GBP 19,500 (approx. INR 24.8 lakh)
Teesside University18 Jan 2027Not yet publishedNot yet publishedTaught MSc, 16 months or 2 years; 2-year route GBP 20,000 (approx. INR 25.5 lakh)
Aston UniversityJanuary 2027Not yet publishedNot yet publishedMSc Advanced Computer Science, 1 year, GBP 24,800 (approx. INR 31.6 lakh)
Manchester Metropolitan UniversityJanuary 2027Not yet publishedNot yet publishedMSc Business Analytics, GBP 21,000 (approx. INR 26.7 lakh)
University of GreenwichJanuary 2027Not yet publishedNot yet publishedMSc Computer Science, 1 year, GBP 19,450 (approx. INR 24.8 lakh)
  • Liverpool: Advanced Mechanical Engineering MSc (Eng) and Radiation Detection and Measurement for Nuclear Applications MSc close to international applicants on 30 November 2026.
  • Birmingham City: the 18 November date is for applicants living in India.
  • Portsmouth: the London campus closes earlier, on 9 November 2026, for Indian applicants.
  • Brunel: Business School, Economics and Finance, and Computer Science courses may close before 13 November.
  • Loughborough London: its January fee includes the GBP 5,000 London 10th Anniversary Award, and awards cannot be combined.

All INR figures use the live Google-published rate captured on 2 October 2026: GBP 1 = INR 127.30.

International dates close first because your university must issue a CAS (Confirmation of Acceptance for Studies, the reference your visa form needs) before you can file the visa. Treat the international column as your only deadline.

From our counselling desk: in the 2026 January round, the most common reason our Hyderabad students missed the intake wasn't a visa refusal. It was working to a home-applicant deadline, then reaching us in early January with no CAS.

Application and Visa Timeline for the January 2027 Intake

Plan backwards from the CAS date, not the application deadline:

  1. Meet your conditional offer. Send the final marks, English scores or documents it asks for. Queen Mary wants conditions met by 4 January 2027.
  2. Pay the CAS deposit and request the CAS. The CAS deposit is the part-payment a university takes before it issues your CAS. Loughborough London wants it by 4 January and issues CAS by 8 January 2027. Northumbria wants the deposit by 13 December and the CAS request by 16 December 2026. Queen Mary takes CAS requests until 11 January 2027. Check what your CAS should show in our CAS letter guide.
  3. Clear any credibility interview, a short call that checks you know your course and costs. Birmingham City’s Indian applicants pay an interview deposit by 23 November and finish CAS Shield (its document check) by 4 December. The CAS deposit is due by 11 December, and the last CAS goes out on 18 December 2026.
  4. Get ATAS clearance if your course needs it. The Academic Technology Approval Scheme covers some science and engineering subjects. It takes at least 30 working days and must arrive before you file the visa.
  5. File the visa. You can apply up to 6 months before your course starts, and a decision usually takes 3 weeks. Priority (GBP 500, about 5 working days) and super priority (GBP 1,000, next working day) aren’t always available; your online application tells you if you can pick one.

January Intake Costs, Funds and Payment Dates

From 30 November 2026, a Student visa application needs GBP 1,203 (approx. INR 1.5 lakh) a month outside London or GBP 1,570 (approx. INR 2.0 lakh) in London, under new visa rules from September 2026. Earlier applications need GBP 1,171 and GBP 1,529 (approx. INR 1.5 and 1.9 lakh). Your application date decides which applies.

What you pay or proveAmountWhen
Coventry CAS depositGBP 8,000 (approx. INR 10.2 lakh)Before the CAS
Coventry deposit for Punjab, Uttarakhand, HaryanaFull first-year tuitionBefore the CAS
Student visa feeINR 73,795 (GBP 558) on the Home Office India fee table, 2 Oct 2026When you file
UK health cover fee, per yearGBP 776 (approx. INR 98,800)When you file
Maintenance funds for 9 months, filed from 30 Nov 2026GBP 10,827 (approx. INR 13.8 lakh) outside London; GBP 14,130 (approx. INR 18.0 lakh) in LondonHeld 28 days before you file

Parents, plan around the 28-day rule. Keep the money, plus any first-year fees you haven’t paid yet, in the account for 28 days without a break. Then apply within 31 days of the last day, as the GOV.UK Student visa money page explains. It’s money you show, not a fee: it stays yours.

In the January files we prepared last year, the date that slipped most often was the funds date, not the application deadline. File before 30 November only if your CAS, documents and 28 days of funds are ready. Filing before 30 November means showing at most GBP 369 less (GBP 41 a month over 9 months in London), while a refused visa loses you the GBP 558 fee, so don’t rush an incomplete file. Our UK proof of funds guide shows which bank and loan letters count.

The health cover fee (the Immigration Health Surcharge, your charge for using the NHS) is billed on visa length, not course length. A one-year master’s visa runs about 17 months, so you pay for 1.5 years: GBP 1,164.

Worked example: Coventry MSc Computer Science, filed in DecemberGBPINR (approx.)
Tuition, one year19,50024.8 lakh
Student visa fee55873,795
UK health cover fee, 17-month visa1,1641.5 lakh
Total you pay21,22227.0 lakh
Living money you show, not a fee10,82713.8 lakh

January vs September Intake: Course Length and Graduate Visa

Your Graduate visa (post-study work visa) length depends on your application date. The GOV.UK Graduate visa guidance gives 2 years to applications made on or before 31 December 2026 and 18 months from 1 January 2027, with 3 years for doctoral graduates. A master’s graduate who started in January 2027 applies in 2028, so gets 18 months.

Both January and September 2027 starters apply after that cut, so January costs you nothing extra on post-study work. Our post-study work visa guide covers the route.

Longer courses are the first catch. Northumbria’s MSc Advanced Computer Science runs 16 months. Portsmouth’s January MSc Computer Science runs 18 months, and its January courses normally run 14 to 18 months. Each extra month is another month of rent, and a 16 to 18 month course pays two years of health surcharge, GBP 1,552.

The second catch is choice: fewer courses start in the winter intake, with 10 January-start MSc programmes at Exeter and 12 programmes at Birmingham. If your first-choice course isn’t on a January list, wait for the September intake in the UK rather than settle. Do the same if your family can’t hold the post-30 November funds figure by early December.

Missed the January Deadline? Your Next Intake Options

Missing the January intake in UK doesn’t cost you 2027:

  • Coventry University restarts its MSc Computer Science in March, May and July 2027.
  • Aston University offers its MSc Advanced Computer Science from April 2027.
  • A full list of May intake universities in the UK covers the next large window.
  • Deferring to September 2027 opens the widest course choice of the year.

If your CAS or funds ran late, take Coventry’s or Aston’s spring start. If your course runs only in September, defer. Our guide to how many intakes there are in the UK compares them.

Get in Touch

Frequently Asked Questions

Yes, at a few universities. Greenwich takes January undergraduates through UCAS or its own fast track. The UCAS date of 13 January 2027 (18:00 UK time) is different: it is the main application deadline for courses starting in September 2027. A few UCAS courses do start between January and July, and they can carry earlier deadlines.

Yes, if your September plan slipped: January saves you eight months against waiting for September 2027. The trade-off is a shorter course list, and some January master’s run 16 to 18 months, which adds rent and health surcharge. If your first-choice course runs only in September, wait for it.

You need upper-intermediate English, level B2 on the European scale, for a degree course under the Student visa English rules. You may not need IELTS: your university can test your English itself, but it must still find you at B2. Ask each university which tests it accepts.

The application fee is GBP 937 (approx. INR 1.2 lakh), and the Immigration Health Surcharge for 18 months is GBP 1,552.50 (approx. INR 2.0 lakh). Together that’s GBP 2,489.50 (approx. INR 3.2 lakh). You must be in the UK when you apply, so plan the application before your Student visa ends.

Yes, if you live in India. Under the GOV.UK TB test rules, you need one if you’re coming for 6 months or more and have been living in India, which is on the UK’s list. Book an approved clinic early: the certificate lasts 6 months from your x-ray, so an October scan covers a December filing.

Sources

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